1. Field
This invention relates to water hoses, particularly those commonly used by households for supplying water to gardens and other related household uses. It is particularly directed to reinforcement sleeves used in connection with such hoses and provides an improved such sleeve which facilitates the coupling and decoupling of a hose to a water supply fixture.
2. State of the Art
Water supply hoses of the type commonly referred to as garden hoses are widely used by households for a variety of purposes. The use of such hoses is burdened by various recurring inconveniences associated with the propensity of such hoses to develop kinks as they are moved about or repositioned. Water hoses are conventionally stored in coiled condition, and kinks tend to develop as the hose is moved about in a fashion which tends to twist the resulting coils. Frequently, an effective closure of a hose occurs near its supply end when the hose is stretched or otherwise manipulated. Accordingly, some hoses are provided with a reinforcement sleeve which is either permanently fixed or positionable in the proximity of a kink-prone region of the hose. Such reinforcing sleeves are of sufficient length, conventionally between about 8 and about 20 inches to maintain the hose in an unkinked condition. Slidably-mounted reinforcement sleeves, while they may be configured either the same as or unlike the cross-sectional configuration of the hose, are ordinarily sized to move easily along the longitudinal axis of the hose when the hose is in either a straightened or nearly straightened condition.
The most common location of the reinforcing sleeve is adjacent or near the connection point of the hose to the supply fixture. A water flow restricting kink is readily developed when the hose is pulled in a fashion which bends its sidewalls in the proximity of this attachment point. The reinforcing sleeve distributes forces along a sufficient length of the hose to avoid the development of such a kink.
Although most water hoses are circular in cross-sectional configuration, a reinforcement sleeve used with such hoses may have a polygonal cross-sectional configuration. Non-circular configurations facilitate manual movement of the sleeve and provide additional resistance against kinking.
Another common difficulty experienced with water hoses occurs in the attachment or detachment of an end of a length of hose to a water supply fixture or another length of hose. The water supply fixture is typically in the form of a faucet with a male-threaded outlet portion adapted to receive corresponding female threads carried by a coupling fixture at one (supply) end of the hose. A male-threaded coupling fixture is ordinarily carried at the opposite (discharge) end of the hose so that a pair of hoses may be connected by coupling the supply end of one length of hose with the discharge end of a second length of hose. After a period of use, the male threads of an outdoor water faucet tend to become damaged, corroded or otherwise difficult to couple with the corresponding female hose threads. The threads of even a new water tap may be unsuitable to effect a good, water-tight connection with a hose coupling because such fixtures are often of indifferent quality. In any event, the threaded fixtures carried at either end of a hose are exposed to damage through use. Moreover, it is often difficult to decouple a hose connection, whether between a hose and water supply or between two lengths of hose, after they have been connected for a period of time. Such connections often corrode in place due to the evaporation of water between adjacent threads. In other instances, the coupling is accidentally damaged or mechanically distorted.
Ideally, hoses should be capable of attachment and detachment with respect to a water supply tap through the use of ordinary finger pressure by individuals of ordinary or even limited physical capability. Because of the difficulties in effecting and maintaining finger-tightenable connections, however, the fixtures carried at the ends of typical water hoses are provided with knurled, ribbed or otherwise configured surfaces adapted for gripping by pliers, a wrench or other leverage device. Some hose couplings are provided with polygonal (typically hexagonal), wrench-receiving surfaces to accommodate a crescent wrench or similar adjustable leverage tool. The provision of such adaptations to hose coupling fixtures provides a means for effecting water-tight connections and disconnection but only if an appropriate tool is available. Without such tools, it is difficult for an ordinary person reliably to effect a connection or disconnection of conventional hose couplings. This difficulty is especially noticeable as individuals lose finger dexterity and strength due to advancing age or debilitating conditions such as arthritis.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,817,997 (Ingram) discloses a hose coupling with a metal sleeve cinched onto a hose near the male-threaded end of the coupling. By exerting torque on the metal sleeve, the male-threaded end is either connected to or disconnected from the coupling. The metal sleeve provides a hand hold to maintain the male-threaded end of a hose stationary while turning the female-threaded portion of the coupling onto the male-threaded portion. In practice however, torque and rotational movement are ordinarily applied to the female end of the hose coupling which is provided with a rotating connection to avoid twisting of the hose. A serious drawback of the Ingram device is that rotation of the metal sleeve of necessity effects a rotation of the entire hose to which it is crimped.
There remains a need for an improved system whereby the coupling and decoupling of hose connections can be effected by persons of ordinary capabilities, including those with limited finger dexterity, without the need for special wrenches or other auxiliary means.